Deficiency of dihydropteridine reductase causes a variant form of phenylketonuria associated with a devastating neurological
disease characterized by mental retardation, hypokinesis and other features relating to basal ganglia disorder. Hyperphenylalaninaemias
with tetrahydrobiopterin deficiency make up about 1–3% of all hyperphenylalaninaemias. We describe three patients from Calabria,
a southern region of Italy, who have a dihydropteridine reductase deficiency, caused by the same mutation (p.L14P) also found
in the nearby region of Sicily. We report the evolution of clinical and biochemical data during the treatment of these patients
where we used prolactin serum determination to adapt the specific therapy. This report suggests that serum prolactin levels
can be a good biomarker for optimal dosage of hydroxylated precursors in long-term treatment monitoring.
Communicating editor: Nenad Blau
JIMD Short Report #100 (2007) Online
Competing interests: None declared
References to electronic databases: DHPR deficiency: OMIM +261630. Dihydropteridine reductase: EC16.99.7.